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The Akamat messenger!

Friday, February 24, 2017

Hello my friends!!! After a small "time-out" I am back to my bench building something small (but interesting) like a "come back" to our hobby

A little of story

Panzernest was a mobile machine gun bunker (sometimes called Krab),
designed and built by Nazi Germany in early 1940. It was made of cast
steel, as a single block of metal, with few additional elements such as
machine gun hatches and entrance for the crew. The MG Panzernest did
provide the crew with valuable protection, both against weather and
enemy fire up to 4,7cm in calibre. Nest could be easily transported with
the opening at the front doubling as the housing for the towing limber
and the holes for the ventilation acting as the mounting for an axle,
which was then fitted two wheels.

once established at its post, the exposed upper half of the pillbox (which is non-rotating) is camouflaged with rocks, earth, or local vegetation. In the front of the pillbox, there is a small embrasure for the machine
gun, with an observation peephole above. When necessary, these openings
are covered outside by a heavy metal shield, which can be moved either
to the right or left of the embrasure by means of a lever inside the
pillbox. On top of the pillbox are two collapsible periscopes, also
regulated from the interior. The entrance to the pillbox is a small door
in the rear; this is locked from the inside by means of two brackets.

About the kit

RPM's kit is made in plastic and it's perfect like shape and dimensions. There is only one mistake about the mounting of the heavy metal shield, which can be moved either to the right or left of the embrasure. Unfortunately all kit's plastic parts are badly moulded; So a lot of "flash" and moulding signs and you will need a lot of putty + sand papers and patience.

Personally I changed the MG with a new by Adlers Nest and the chimney with a piece of sprue (first I opened the neccessary holes for the smoke). Small nuts were been made by white styrene using an punch n' die riveting tool. Once the panzernest was been assembled I pass all its surfaces (except the periscopes and the opening hatch) with Mr Surfacer 500 using an old tooth brush to simulate the steel casting. Then I used for the first time the awesome "Panzer Grey modulation set" by Gunze. At the end I sprayed a small white circle with a black "10" inside using a Stencilit masks. The number "10" is in an inverted position as the MG panzernests were been mounted in an inverted position on wagon-like wheels meanwhile they were been trasported.